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Home Insecurity
Home Insecurity is the third episode of Season 1 and the overall third episode of The Venture Bros. Plot Baron Ünderbheit, a iron-jawed ruler of Ünderland kingdom receives updates on the nation's status from his three trusted servants Catclops, Girl Hitler and Manic 8-Ball. The details of the reports demonstrate that Ünderland is a bizarre dictatorship of compulsory legislation, and also utilizes slaves and child labor. After their status reports, Ünderbheit informs them that each of them has betrayed him (and therefore the country). The Baron lulls them into a false sense of security by stating that they are merely to be exiled, and each is to receive a parting gift of "tiger balm." They are confused to the nature of the gift, when suddenly they realize that Ünderbheit has left the room, and killer tigers with bombs attached (tiger bombs) are released into the room. Outside, Ünderbheit informs his minion Manservant that he has only one enemy left to kill: Dr. Venture. At the Venture Compound, Team Venture's bodyguard Brock Samson is packing for his memorial day weekend vactation. Dr. Venture pleads with him to wait a few more days until he can complete the compound's new security system, but Brock is unsympathetic and drives off in his Dodge Charger. Hank Venture also wants to join Brock, but is denied. Hank's actions cause him to argue with Venture, which makes Dean Venture upset. Nearing his camping destination, Brock is stopped by an army soldier who informs him, after flashing his ID card, that the area has been closed for reasons of national security. Brock ignores the man and proceeds to his planned camp-site. That night, Venture falls asleep at his workbench. H.E.L.P.eR. finds him and carries him lovingly to bed. Returning to the lab, the robot notices the plans Venture had been working on: a new security construct named G.U.A.R.D.O. Assuming that the new project is intended as his own replacement, H.E.L.P.eR. packs a few possessions and leaves the compound in "sadness". Brock's peaceful evening by the campfire is interrupted when he gets distracted by rustling noises nearby. Brock tracks a shadowy intruder until he finds a tall, hairy, humanoid animal and engages it in hand-to-hand combat. Soon he is attacked by a bionically-augmented man in a red track suit, who Brock neutralizes by kicking him in his still-natural testicles. Back at the compound, an Ünderland henchman opens a door and releases a scorpion into Dr. Venture's bedroom on Baron Ünderbheit's orders at the same time that henchman 24 opens a window and drops a tarantula on the opposite side of the same room on the Monarch's orders. The scorpion and tarantula duke it out a little. The two henchmen spot each other and start arguing and begin shoving each other; the racket wakes Venture and he gets scared because he catches the two venomous creatures battling inches from his face he screams and panics and slaps a button on his night-stand. Steel shutters close over every door vent and window in the complex, while Venture and his two sons are dropped into a reinforced panic room. Hank sees the spider and scorpion still crawling on his father and smacks Venture in the head with a nearby fire extinguisher. Dean disposes of the tarantula with his hover boots and smashes it, while Hank disposes of the scorpion with the same fire extinguisher. Rusty's been bitten and pinched by the tarantula and stung in the heart by the scorpion. Dean exits the room to look for a first aid kit but encounters G.U.A.R.D.O.; the massive robot is apparently not completely programmed yet, and warns Dean that he is an intruder and chases him back into panic room. Venture awakens and explains that he fell asleep before programming G.U.A.R.D.O. to distinguish friends from foes. They are temporarily safe, since the door is made of tempered steel... but the robot is constructed of the same material. Outside the compound, the two rival henchmen groups (which includes the first appearance of Henchman 21) continue to fight over who gets to kill Venture with the Monarch Mobile and Ünderbheit Mobile. They call a truce, and the Monarch invites Ünderbheit to his Cocoon headquarters to work out a compromise. After the ceremonial attempts on each other's life (resulting in the death of three of the Monarch's henchmen), the two villains begin discussing who should retreat. Ünderbheit calls the menacing of Venture as his claim, as Ünderbheit has known Venture since college, and Venture is responsible for Ünderbheit's jaw being permanently damaged. Their lackeys, who have grown bored while waiting for commands begin drinking beer together and discussing their respective bosses. Brock listens sympathetically to the track-suited man, who explains that he is former astronaut Steve Summers. A horrible accident left him gravely injured, but the government saved his life by grafting bionic parts worth six million dollars into him - and then expected him to repay the cost of the operation. Rather than spend the rest of his life doing the government's dirty work, he fled into the wilderness where he met a Sasquatch (also known as a Bigfoot), who became his lover. When the group suddenly hears troops nearby searching for Summers, Brock agrees to help them escape. Driving away from his campsite, Brock is stopped by the same soldier from earlier. He indicates his passengers and explains that he is giving a couple of Vietnam War veterans a ride home. After the soldier lets him pass, a second soldier points out that the "vets" were a shaved Sasquatch and Steve Summers wearing a wig made of its hair. Safe for the moment, Steve thanks Brock for his help. Brock grunts in acknowledgement, still disturbed by his discovery (while shaving him) that Sasquatch is male. The gathered henchmen trade stories and get progressively more intoxicated on alcohol. Their restlessness and drunkenness win out as they decide to subject the Venture compound to childish vandalism. Just outside the fence, H.E.L.P.eR. stands at a bus stop and ignores Venture's pleas over the Communicator Watch for help. The boys persuade their father to apologize, and the robot relents. H.E.L.P.eR. attempts to plug into the compound's security system but accidentally shorts out the power for a few seconds. This "reboots" G.U.A.R.D.O., who finally stomps away from the panic room door. As the steel shutters raise, the security robot spots the rampaging henchmen outside and begins attacking the newly-found intruders. At long last, The Monarch and Baron Ünderbheit reach an agreement: they will cooperate and share the glory of killing their mutual enemy. None of their henchmen respond to their calls, however. Back at the compound, dozens of uniform-clad bodies are sprawled in the aftermath of obvious violence. Brock pulls up in his Dodge Charger and, startled by the carnage, hits G.U.A.R.D.O. and disables it. H.E.L.P.eR. stands outside in the science lab panic room, blocking Venture and his sons from leaving until they apologize further. Episode Cast *'James Urbaniak': Dr. Venture, Catclops, G.U.A.R.D.O., Misc. Ünderbheit Henchmen, Soldier 2 *[[wikipedia:Michael_Sinterniklaas|'Michael Sinterniklaas']]: Dean Venture *[[wikipedia:Patrick_Warburton|'Patrick Warburton']]: Brock Samson *[[Chris McCulloch|'Chris McCulloch']]: Hank Venture, The Monarch, Steve Summers, Sasquatch, Manservant, Misc. Monarch Henchmen *'T. Ryder Smith': Baron Ünderbheit, Soldier 1 *'Doc Hammer' as Dr. Girlfriend, Monarch Henchman 1 *'Mia Barron': Girl Hitler *'Soul-Bot': H.E.L.P.eR. First Appearances * Baron Werner Ünderbheit * Catclops * Girl Hitler * G.U.A.R.D.O. * Henchman 21 * Learning Beds * Manic 8-Ball * Manservant * Office of Secret Intelligence * Sasquatch * Steve Summers Connections to Other Episodes [[Dia de los Dangerous!|'Dia de los Dangerous!]]'' * Baron Werner Ünderbheit was first mentioned in the episode Dia de los Dangerous!, when The Monarch referred to him as a "dime-store Doctor Doom". * The Monarch mentions, when Dr. Girlfriend buys the wrong soda, that it's like his dad did the shopping. However, this is something he's probably not actually experienced, as his parents died in a plane crash when he was young, as seen in Dia de los Dangerous! [[Past Tense|Past Tense]] * Baron Ünderbheit explains that he lost his jaw in a lab accident where he was partnered with Dr. Venture. The episode ''Past Tense'' shows Ünderbheit, jaw intact, inhabiting the same college dorm hall as Venture. [[Tag Sale – You're It!|Tag Sale – You're It!]] * The episode was shown out of order, which is evident when Ünderbheit displays the Tiger Balm he bought at the tag sale in ''Tag Sale – You're It!'' [[Powerless in the Face of Death|Powerless in the Face of Death]] *Before Brock goes off on vacation, he refers to Hank (who is sporting a feathered headdress) as "Runs-with-scissors". In the season two opener, ''Powerless in the Face of Death'', Dean is seen running with safety scissors and then being impaled in a death montage. [[Shadowman 9: In the Cradle of Destiny|Shadowman 9: In the Cradle of Destiny]] *Baron Ünderbheit explains that he lost his jaw in a lab accident where he was partnered with Dr. Venture. It's later revealed in ''Shadowman 9: In the Cradle of Destiny'' that it was actually The Monarch who blew up the lab but the incident was blamed on Dr. Venture, whom The Monarch was trying to kill. **The Monarch acts surprised when he hears about the lab incident, although he has no reason to be surprised since a classmate already told him about this incident (though it is possible that the Monarch was merely feigning surprise in order to avoid incurring the baron's wrath for being the actual man responsible for the loss of his lower jaw). [[A Party for Tarzan|A Party For Tarzan]] *Henchman 21 mentions in this episode that he joined The Monarch's crew when the Fluttering Horde kidnapped him at 15. This was later elaborated on in the Season 6 episode ''A Party For Tarzan''. Cultural References [[wikipedia:Aquaman|'''Aquaman]] * Hank Venture wears pajamas that are based on the costume of the DC Comics superhero Aquaman . [[wikipedia:Bigfoot|'Bigfoot']]' / Sasquatch' * In North American folklore, Bigfoot or Sasquatch is said to be a hairy, upright-walking, ape-like creature that dwells in the wilderness and leaves footprints. [[wikipedia:Doctor Doom|'Doctor Doom']] * This episode firmly establishes Baron Ünderbheit as an homage and parody of Doctor Doom from Marvel Comics; from his dictatorial rule of his home country to his disfigurement which he blames on a college rival who is now his arch-enemy. * In the earlier [[Dia de los Dangerous!|''Dia de los Dangerous!]] episode, before Baron Ünderbheit had appeared on-screen, the Monarch referred to him as a "dime-store Doctor Doom". [[wikipedia:Dr. No (film)|Dr. No]]' (1962)' * The assassination attempt by tarantula is an homage to the very first James Bond film, where 007’s nemesis Dr. No uses the same method in an unsuccessful attempt to dispatch him. ''[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phantasm_(film) '''Phantasm']'' (1979) * The round weapon that Baron Ünderbheit throws at The Monarch shares its design with the Orbs from the Phantasm film series. [[wikipedia:Robocop 2|'Robocop 2']]' (1990)' * G.U.A.R.D.O.'s monitor displaying his master's face is a reference to a robot in the movie Robocop 2. [[wikipedia:Rules of Engagement (TV series)|'Rules of Engagement']]' (2007-2013)' * In the "Ghost Story" episode of the sitcom Rules of Engagement, Patrick Warburton's (voice of Brock Samson) character relates a dream to his wife in which he and Lee Majors (the actor who portrayed Steve Austin) are hunting Bigfoot. [[wikipedia:Spider-Man|'Spider-Man']] * Dean Venture wears pajamas that are based on the costume of the Marvel Comics superhero Spider-Man. * G.U.A.R.D.O.'s monitor displaying his master's face may be a reference to the robotic Spider-Slayers from Spider-Man comics, which showed the face of J. Jonah Jameson on the head-mounted monitor. [[wikipedia:Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones|'Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones']]' (2002)' * A Monarch henchman places a spider in Dr. Venture's sleeping quarters while he is asleep, while a henchman of Ünderbheit simultaneously places a scorpion in the same area. The spider and scorpion both crawl onto Dr. Venture's bed while he is still sleeping. This is a possible reference to Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones when Bounty Hunter Zam Wesell places two Kouhuns (arthropod creatures) in the sleeping quarters of Senator Padmé_Amidala in an attempt to assassinate her. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Six_Million_Dollar_Man '''The Six Million Dollar Man']' '''(1973-1978) *Steve Summers is a parody of Colonel Steve Austin from The Six Million Dollar Man. His name comes from a combination of Steve Austin's first name and the last name of the The Bionic Woman character Jamie Sommers. Several episodes of The Six Million Dollar Man featured a sasquatch, who was an ally of Austin. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Underoos Underoos] *Dean and Hank both sport Underoos, a line of children's underwear introduced in the late 1970s that became popular in the 1980s. Dean wears a Spider-Man pair while Hank wears an Aquaman pair. Both characters wear these Underoos in several subsequent episodes. Production Notes *One of the animation directors (Kimson Albert) has a "nickname" inserted into his credits. The nickname is an unusual line or word from the preceding episode. For this episode, the credit reads Kimson "Shaved Bigfoot" Albert. *Jackson Publick mentioned in his LiveJournal blog that there is a "lost commentary" for this episode, which was cut from the season one DVD primarily due to lack of space. The audio track can be downloaded separately. *Jackson Publick said that the boys' pajamas were an in-joke reference to a blurb that described the collaboration between Doc Hammer and Ben Edlund as "just like the legendary lifelong partnership of Spider-Man and Aquaman".Jackson Publick, Go Team Venture!: The Art and Making of The Venture Bros. (2018), p. 47 References Category:Season 1 Category:Episodes Category:The Venture Bros. episodes Category:2004 television episodes